Your vision What is your future?

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V ision E ffort S ystems P ractice A ttitude VESPA: The A Level Mindset Being a Successful A Level Student

Activity 1: Fake it ’til you become it: Amy Cuddy’s power poses, visualized it-amy-cuddys-power-poses-visualized/ Social psychologist Amy Cuddy gave a now famous lecture in 2012 stating that “Your body language shapes who you are”. Assume a “power” posture for just two minutes, like you have just won a race or won an amazing prize. The visualization on this slide illustrates some of the postures. By adopting a “success” stance for at least two minutes, you will (theoretically) change the way you feel!

Ask yourself if what you are doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow

What is vision? Think about … What is your passion? What are your values – what matters to you and defines you? What are your goals – what do you want to achieve in your life? Do you see these as interrelated or separate things?

Who are you doing this for? “All people dream, but not equally.” D H Lawrence Image: Willee Cole

Activity 2 Look at the list numbered 1 to 12. Pick out three things that are most like you and one which you think is least like you: 1I don’t care what other people think, I know who I am 2I care most what my friends think about me 3I want to enjoy my time at college this year 4I want my online profile to attract lots of attention 5I want people outside my own circle to know what I am good at 6I care about what happens in my community 7I care most what my family think of me 8I don’t want to make decisions that upset other people 9I work to achieve what I want however long it takes 10I don’t care much about being a high flyer I just want to be happy 11I have a lot of ambition for my future 12If I don’t find things work out first time I find it hard to stay positive

Activity 2: Feedback Does your opinion of yourself and your potential come more from yourself (internally) or others (externally)? If you feel more affected by external opinions of you, how does this affect the goals you set and how you work towards them?

What does a minute feel like? Everyone stand up and sit down when you think a minute is up No phones or counting!!!!

Activity : The lift pitch We are going to2 different exercises now. In this activity you are going to imagine that you are on your way to an interview at your chosen university. You have arrived at the correct building and you reach the lift to get to your floor. You have just minutes before you reach the interview room and your thoughts are a jumble, you are beginning to panic. There is a lot riding on this interview.

The Lift Pitch – A You have worked hard and your predicted grades are on track. You have developed some useful strategies for learning and revising and have put a regular schedule in place for study. It has been difficult to stick with and avoid distractions but this is the goal you have been planning for. You have 30 seconds to visualise yourself in this situation and think of three things you would want to highlight in the interview.

The Lift Pitch – B Sadly you have not kept on track with your studies, you have a fair amount of work but there are aspects you are unsure of and you didn’t spend much time on your personal statement. You have not made use of the enrichment opportunities at college because it seemed like too much time to give up. This is a rescue mission. You have 30 seconds to visualise yourself in this situation and think of three things you would say in the interview.

Activity : Feedback Could you visualise yourself going for an interview? Have you considered what strategies you can put in place right now to maximise your chances? Does it seem too far off to bother about? Remember: a last minute rescue mission is unlikely to work if you have not put in the effort beforehand.

Time perspective - Future focused or present focused? After more than ten years’ research, Zimbardo concluded that our attitude toward time is just as defining as key personality traits such as optimism or sociability. He believes that time perspective influences many of our judgements, decisions, and actions. Zimbardo recommended that a more future-based time perspective could help students study and progress to higher education. Philip Zimbardo: The psychology of time

Need to spend time focusing your future You need to spend time focusing on what you want from the “now” (your present) to make sure you move into the future you would like: Your thoughts & feelings on A Level Results day Your next step – grades for HE, careers The skills & aptitudes you want to have to excel in life

Your vision for the future What was the first goal you ever remember setting for yourself? Did you achieve it?

Need to have goals Having a goal positively impact the chances of succeeding “Doing your best” with a general goal will not ensure you really get what you need! Even when goals are not guaranteed, having a clear goal will move you closer to it

Realistic goals are not to be “set in stone” because we all need to review our goals

How did that feel? Research has suggested that all these activities will generate positivity in minutes : 1.List three important benefits of achieving a goal, focusing on how much better life will be for you. 2.Force a smile! Hold a pencil between your teeth – make sure it does not touch your lips. Hold the expression for 15 seconds. 3.Wear more colour. 4.Change your route home or into college. 5.Walk like a happy person, relax your steps and swing your arms. 6.Note down three things that went really well this week.

Short term vision What feedback are you getting from your – Friends – Teachers – Parents – Siblings Is the feedback positive or negative? How do you respond? How can you use the feedback to improve your future?

Medium term What do you need to achieve by Christmas? How are you going to get there? What do you need to do? – What resources do you need? – Do you require any support?

Long term Where do you want to be by the time you are 22? – e.g. at the end of a degree course – e.g. 3 years into your career What do you need in 2 years time to ensure you get there?

Activity :Don’t defeat yourself Achieving goals takes time and persistence. Change these negative thoughts into a positive action you can take instead: e.g. I work too slowly = I am thorough but will set a deadline and stick to it I cant fit in time for my homework I cant understand this subject I think I picked the wrong subjects I don’t need to be under this pressure

Activity : Goal planning 1.Note down one goal that you want to achieve before Christmas. 2.Next, put a timescale on how long you think it will take to achieve this. 3.Are there any “fixed” deadlines that you cannot alter? 4.Write down at least three steps you need to take to achieve this goal. 5.Note down any steps where you think you need more information or help to go forward. 6.If you need help, write the name of anyone (or the role of someone) who might help you. 7.For each step – imagine what could stop you achieving this. 8.For each step - record a “plan B” to get round the obstacle 9.Is your plan realistic? 10.Think of a reward you can give yourself when you achieve this goal. REMEMBER: Plans are not fixed. If you change your long term goals you will need to change your short term goals as well. You need to understand that your plans should be flexible.

Reflect and Review Take time to reflect on what is now a realistic short term goal(s) for you to set yourself for the month of November. Then set some medium term goals which focus on the January mock exams Use the piece of card you have End

Activity : Feedback Was this exercise useful? What resources and people can you draw on now to help you achieve your short or medium term goals? Other ideas for goal planning will be included in your Vespa Handbook so you can practice these techniques.

The handbook is accessible via the “A level recipe for success” icon in your course page on Chi Online

Next steps Get a copy of the workbook off chionline Then work through the vision sections – discuss with others at home Next week we will look at Effort in the session Your engagement is the key

Chance to win an ipad! Full attendance & completion of the workbook = opportunity to win! Submission of workbook by Wednesday